Students fill suitcases to share stories of their heritage
Monday, February 21, 2005 - Michelle Strutzenberger
Students at a Peterborough elementary school community are looking into their cultural pasts to help themselves, their parents and community members, better understand and celebrate the diverse heritages represented at the school.
R.F. Downey Public School pupils are researching about and sharing their heritage in a unique way this school year. Each student is filling a suitcase with mementos of their family history and culture. All 250 suitcases will be displayed at a year’s end event.

Principal Jodi Whetung says the Come Fill Your Suitcase project is part of a year-long focus on research and heritage. She says it’s exciting in that it demonstrates to students that research includes more than studying books.

Students from kindergarten to Grade 8 are being encouraged to ask parents, grandparents and other family members about traditions, celebrations, where they come from, why they were started and so on, says Whetung. As they do so, they will explore together which items best illustrate what they have learned and fill their suitcases with those mementos.

“A suitcase is such a great way, when you put pieces in, to show who you are, where you come from, your family and history,” Whetung tells the Grassroots Review.

As a part of the school’s focus on heritage, several people, including parents of students, have shared with the entire student body some of their own traditions and celebrations. For instance, a family who is Muslim talked to the students about various elements of their culture.

To raise awareness among parents about the project, the school is also planning a Fill Your Suitcase event for families, to take place Wednesday, Feb. 23 at 6 p.m.

The evening includes several cultural activities, which people can choose to observe or take part in. For instance, two Aboriginal hand drummers will be sharing their talents. Highland dancers, a grass dancer, and several storytellers will also be present, among others. Visitors will be able to sample finger foods from a wide variety of cultures and countries.

Whetung says the evening is supposed to be very interactive, particularly between parents and their children. She and others are currently working on arranging several activities which would further interaction, but all the details have not been solidified quite yet. One idea is to have audio recorders set up in a separate room. Students will be able to record an interview with their parents about an aspect of their family heritage. These recorded conversations could become another memento in the students’ suitcases.

The idea for the Come Fill Your Suitcase project comes from the book “Hana’s Suitcase” by Karen Levine. This internationally known children’s book tells the story of discovering the history of a young girl whose life was devastated by the Holocaust.

For more information about the Come Fill Your Suitcase project or the Wednesday evening event, contact the school at 705-742-7201.